A southbound Caltrain struck and killed a person in Palo Alto as commuters made their way home Thursday night.
The train hit the unidentified person near the intersection of Alma Street and El Camino Real around 6:15 p.m., Caltrain spokesman Jonah Weinberg said.

Palo Alto police officers at the scene declined to comment on whether the death was an accident or a suicide.

Northbound train service was stopped for 30 minutes as investigators gathered information. At 6:45 p.m., at least nine investigators from the Palo Alto Police Department, San Mateo County and the San Mateo County Transit District were at the scene.

The fatality marks the second Caltrain-related death in Palo Alto in less than a week.

On June 28, Maria de Jesus Rodriguez, 21, of Sunnyvale, was killed when a Caltrain collided with her maroon Toyota Camry as it sat motionless on the northbound tracks at East Meadow Drive.

Near the scene of the accident Thursday, Menlo Park resident Angie Morey said the deaths are reminders that people need to pay attention to the dangers the commuter trains pose.

"You have to be cautious. Hopefully the trend doesn't continue," Morey said.

Posted by Matt
a resident of another community
on Jul 6, 2007 at 5:57 pm

It is interesting how you headline the article as though CalTrain is some sort of a villian. That the train hit the victim. As though it is the train's fault.

Perhaps it should read something more like...

"Another person was killed when she walked in front of a HUGHE train as it was moving southbound through Palo Alto."

Yes, it is a tragedy. And I feel for the family of the person who made the mistake of not being as alert as one should. Their lives have been changed forever. The next few weeks, and perhaps years, will be a trial and full of sorrow.

But really now. One must put the responsibility on the victim who doesn't pay attention and reaps the reward of such inattention.

How do you miss a train? Are we not taught to look both ways when we cross a street? Are we not taught similarly when we are crossing a railroad track?

Posted by Walter_E_Wallis
a resident of Midtown
on Jul 6, 2007 at 7:27 pm

AS I comment elsewhere, we put doors on elevator shafts even though everyone knows not to step into the shaft when the car isn't there. Matt may well owe his existence to some of the miriad safety appliances we build into stuff as the state of the art allows.

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